SWITZERLAND

Contradictions to the ballot box

Swiss citizens return to the ballot boxes on 26 November. Two new referenda are concentrated on the federal law on family benefits and on the law relating to cooperation with the states of Eastern Europe. The latter – as explained by the explanatory brochure sent to every Swiss household in recent days – “permits the […]

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ALBANIA

The struggle to grow

“Albania is looking to Europe and, although it’s a country with a Muslim majority, considers the presence of the Catholic Church important and significant. Albania appreciates, in particular, the witness she gave under Communism and the charity she has shown to everyone in the recent years of ethnic conflict”, says Monsignor Gorg Frendo , auxiliary […]

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CYPRUS

The last wall

Freedom of expression and of religion, civil rights, European integration, and “an exchange of opinions on the current situation of Cyprus and future prospects”, in view of the next European Council in December: these were the main issues on the agenda of the meetings of the President of the Republic of Cyprus Tassos Papadopoulos with […]

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TURKEY

So near and yet so far

“Turkey’s candidature to join the European Union, due to its particular difficulty, especially in view of its high population density and unique historical and cultural links with Islam, is revealing the structural weakness that the EU is heading towards and imposes the need for a critical examination of ‘what’ Europe we want to build”, said […]

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Switzerland: vocations at the centre

Over 1200 dossiers distributed in parishes; 32,000 prayer sheets distributed; over 2,500 contacts per month on the website www.vocations.ch: these are some of the figures of the two “years for vocations 2005-2006” due to end on 26 November. Promoted by the Swiss Bishops’ Conference and dedicated, respectively, to priests (2005) and to the baptized (2006), […]

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Romania: the skyscraper and the cathedral

“The Catholic Church in Bulgaria is following with bitterness and apprehension the construction of a 19-storey skyscraper just a few metres away from St. Joseph’s Cathedral in Bucharest”, declares the Apostolic Exarch of Sofia for Catholics of Byzantine-Slav rite resident in Bulgaria, Monsignor Christo Proykov, who joins his voice to the protests of the Romanian […]

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Germany: ecumenical appeal for refugees

With a joint communication sent on 9 November, the President of the German Bishops’ Conference (DBK), Cardinal Karl Lehmann, and the chairman of the Council of the German Evangelical Council (EKD), have appealed to the ministers of the interior and the internal affairs senators of the Länder, who are called to decide (between 16 and […]

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FIRST PAGE

The Turkish mirror

The point of the belongship of Turkey to the European Union raises a debate around the nature of the European Union. It is the European identity which is now at stake. The debate around Turkey is more than a debate around Turkey. It raises radical questions. It is the revelatory of the current uncertainties around […]

di Antoine Sondag International Chaplain of Pax Romana( Icmica)

ECUMENISM: JOINT STATEMENT OF CARD. MURPHY-O’CONNOR AND ROWAN WILLIAMS

"We acknowledge the importance of working together to present a shared Christian testimony to our society, and we are aware of the importance of working with other Christian denominations and other faiths to promote the good of society". This is a passage from the joint statement of the Catholic Primate of England and Wales, card. […]

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ECUMENISMO: DICHIARAZIONE COMUNE DEL CARD. MURPHY-O’CONNOR E DI ROWAN WILLIAMS

"Riconosciamo l’importanza di lavorare insieme per presentare una condivisa testimonianza cristiana alla nostra società e siamo consapevoli dell’importanza di lavorare con altre denominazioni cristiane e altre fedi per promuovere il bene della stessa". È un passaggio della dichiarazione congiunta del Primate cattolico di Inghilterra e Galles card. Cormac Murphy-O’Connor e del leader della comunione anglicana […]

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